Another day another law passed by the Arkansas legislature has been found deficient by a federal judge.

Judge Kristine Baker has permanently enjoined a 2019 law that made it harder for third parties to qualify for the general election ballot. The 8th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals had already upheld a preliminary injunction in the case, but Secretary of State John Thurston continued to argue for the statute. The judge rejected the state’s argument in an 83-page order issued Friday, accompanied by the permanent injunction.

She said she ruled for the plaintiffs because of the combined effect of an early deadline for petition gathering by new political parties; a 90-day petitioning period; a requirement to gather petitions signed by three percent of voters in the last election for governor (about 26,000) and a requirement that new party candidates declare before major party candidates were selected. She said the state provided no compelling interest in setting these limits.

The Libertarian Party has challenged ballot limits successfully before. The judge noted the party’s argument that the law seemed aimed at partisan ends, to protect Republican candidates from a perhaps inaccurate perceived loss of voters to third-party candidates.

It’s an issue for the 2023 legislature. The Libertarian Party said:

The LPAR anticipates working with the next legislature to help craft a more fair and equitable process for political parties to gain access to the ballot in Arkansas. If you’d like to see Libertarians actively at the table, vote for our candidates for the Arkansas Legislature!

Fair and equitable? The Republican-dominated Arkansas legislature. We shall see. They don’t like people voting unless the votes are by and for Republicans.

Retired senior editor of the Arkansas Times.